Hazard Rebirth: The second evolution

[Hazard]

12 hours ago, peelout said:

What is your walking strategy?  Is this based on an entire days steps (like Fitbit or something like it) or are you going for very, very long walks at a time?

 

Total daily steps.  I use the pedometer on an old 6th gen iPod Nano that I've had for some seven years.  Fantastic little device.  It has a strong clip.  I wear it all day attached to pocket or belt loop.

 

Most of my mileage (95%+) comes from pacing back and forth in our home on and off throughout the day.

 

 

[Hazard]

Weekly progrss review

 

 

I almost reached this week’s Goal Waist at Saturday morning’s measurement.   But on Sunday morning - a big nope.

 

 

I could have made things easier on myself by eating less throughout the week.  But the main culprit that curtailed this morning’s measurement was going to a restaurant yesterday evening (atop virtually no walking yesterday).

 

Mrs H~ was eyeing a house that’s up for sale closer to where she works.   Yesterday we spontaneously nabbed an agent and went to see the house.  After checking it out, Mrs H wanted to have a sit for dinner at a Thai place nearby, and discuss our thoughts about the property.  

 

There’s no calorie info on the food.  So it was a Craps-shoot with the menu.  I chose not to worry over it, ordered what I liked, and focused on the house discussion.  The jump in measurment from yesterday morning to this morning may be salt related, may be calorie related; may be both.  No way of knowing.  

 

Regardless, the Epic Quest train continues chugging forward toward the next target:  A 37.25 inch waist by next Sunday morning.

 

 

 

[Lil_Red_Devil]

I like that you have such a great attitude when things don't go quite right. You look at what the possible problems were, make a plan, and then let it go :-)

[Hazard]

8 hours ago, Lil_Red_Devil said:

I like that you have such a great attitude when things don't go quite right. You look at what the possible problems were, make a plan, and then let it go :-)

 

Thanks. .

 

 

[Hazard]

Weekly progress review

 

 

A other somewhat disappointing week, in a sense.  My waist measurement stagnated throughout most of the week, and ended the week behind schedule again.

 

 

 

As a reminder, earlier this year there was a point in which my waist had two weeks of progress in only one week.  And at that time, I had moved up my goal schedule by a week.  If I hadn’t moved up the schedule, I’d actually still be right on track as of today, .  Overconfidence, yeah?  It may be that I just need to accept that the one great week earlier and the one bad week recently have cancelled each other out, and return my Goal column to the original schedule.

 

I’ll think about it.

 

In either case, my weight and waist averages still went down compared to previous weeks.  Even if the rate of decrease was smaller this week, I still made progress.

 

 

 

As before, activity level isn’t the issue.  I’m averaging over 10 miles a day (22,000+ steps per daily avg).  I’m burning off plenty of calories. I’ve just been very hungry some days, and eating more calories on those days.

 

The extra calorie intake hasn’t been consistent.  It’s higher some days, lower other days.    My daily target is 2180 right now.  But where I might eat close to 2180 one day, I’m turning around and eating far more calories the next day due to excessive hunger.  The result is my average calorie intake is now higher than it should be for supporting my goals.

 

So, what I’m going to do is raise my daily target calories.  In the hopes that doing so will increase my general satiety and curtail those hungrier overeating days.  But, I’ll raise the daily calorie target to an amount that will be less than the average amount I actually ate over the course of last week.  Thus resulting in a net decrease.

 

Though my daily target was 2180, my inconsistent waves of low and high eating last week actually averaged out to about 2700 calories.  This week I’ll set my target at 2400 daily calories, and we’ll see what happens.

 

 

 

[Endor]

You have been sorted in the Harry Potter House Cup PvP!

 

You were born to be:

 

This week you can win house cup points from this feat:

Week 1 - Km's walked week total (max 70km's /44 miles)

 

Don't forget to update your results here:

House cup results sheet

[Hazard]

Weekly progress report

 

 

I mentioned last week that I'd give thought to my Epic Waist Goal schedule.  And I did.  My stated goal is a 28" Waist by 19 December 2018.  The original schedule (if my body adhered to it) had me completing my Epic Waist quest two weeks earlier than the deadline. 

 

In other words,.... I wasn't actually behind on my goal.  I just thought I was because my original weekly schedule was two weeks off the deadline.  Had my body been able to stick to that schedule I would definitely have reached my 28" goal before the deadline.  With time to spare.

 

But this month, I lost those two spare weeks.  C'est la vie.  

 

To fix the schedule, I skipped to the end of my spreadsheet, and set my 28" goal to that final Sunday before the deadline.  (Because I do these weekly progress reports on Sundays).

 

 

 

So.  As of now, my Weekly Goal Waist schedule correctly aligns with my Epic Waist Quest deadline.   No wiggle-room.   The 1/4 inch waist-shrinkage I need to hit from week-to-week is now most definitely the rate of change I need to be meeting (or beating) in order to win this quest.

 

I'm on schedule right now.

 

 

To get things moving again, my plan for the past week was to increase my daily calorie target to 2400.  The reason being that at a lower calorie target, I found myself eating to my target for a day or two and then over-eating pretty high above it on a following day -- due to intolerable hunger levels.  The overall result of that was that my average caloric intake over the week was more like 2700, rather than the 2190 I was aiming for.  By raising my daily calories to 2400, it should have allowed me to feel a little more satiated and - hopefully - not overeat on any days.  The end result being that my actual average calorie intake over the week would be lower than it was, even though my intake target was higher.

 

And that's what I did.

 

This week, I successfully ate within +/- 15 calories of my 2400 target every single day.  I averaged 2401 daily calories of the week.  Pretty much spot on.

 

And as of this morning, both my Waist size and my Weight hit new lows for the year.

 

 

 

 

Despite the frustrations of the past few weeks, my Weekly Average waist continued to get lower.  It just wasn't decreasing at the rate I need in order to reach my Epic Quest deadline.

 

 

I need that number to be at, or better than, -0.25 every week.

 

Having gotten my calorie intake back under control, and consistent, now I need to get my mileage back up.  This previous week I only averaged 6.3 miles per day.  Much lower than I had been doing.  In order to ensure I beat a 37.25 inch waist for next Sunday's report, I'll need to keep my feet moving.

 

Thanks for reading. 

 

 

 

 

[peelout]

2 hours ago, Hazard said:

Having gotten my calorie intake back under control, and consistent, now I need to get my mileage back up.  This previous week I only averaged 6.3 miles per day.  Much lower than I had been doing.  In order to ensure I beat a 37.25 inch waist for next Sunday's report, I'll need to keep my feet moving.

 

Thanks for reading. 

 

 

 

 

Still following for the table.  Glad you are still dropping.

[GregT.]

Hey Hazard,  Great work man.  Sorry i haven't been around, but I am following.  Life just getting in the way again.  Sounds as if you have an excellent handle on what you need to do to achieve your goal.  I expect that you will make it to your target, but just curious, is this also a challenge to see how low you can go regardless of hitting your target?  Will you go lower if you can ?

 

  TANSTAAFL!

[Hazard]

12 hours ago, GregT. said:

just curious, is this also a challenge to see how low you can go regardless of hitting your target?  Will you go lower if you can ?

 

No, I don't believe so.  A 28" waist on a 5'9" body would already be a very small midsection.  But who knows.  If I reach 28" before the deadline (I don't expect to), I'll make the call then as to whether or not I want to push any smaller.

 

 

[Hazard]

weekly progress report

 

 

I didn't post a report last weekend, but the short version is it was Easter holiday and food was had.  I'm not religious these days, but I do enjoy - and want to enjoy - relaxing with at least one celebration during each season of the year.  My measurements, of course, went up a bit from that weekend.

 

This week I fought to bring them down. 

 

 

I highlighted my lowest waist measurement for the week.  Very, very close to the goal.  That was exciting, after so much struggling to get my waist to move lately.  But, as you can see, the very next morning (today) my waist was back up again.   That's obviously disheartening.   My waist measurement isn't cooperating with my goal schedule. 

 

But if you glance to the left of it, looking at my Weight column:  180.8 lbs is a new low for the year.   I'm getting smaller.  It's just a question of where the weight is coming off.  Since my shorts feel looser, I'm pretty sure I've lost a little more fat down on my lower waist where my belt line is; (and Mrs H has remarked upon the changing appearance of my posterior, which suggests there's been some chiseling happening back there too).  My body just seems to like to hang on to the "spare tire," deflating it last whenever possible.

 

So, we keep on keeping on.  I'm confident that if my Weight continues to go down, my Waist measurement will go down, too.  I hope at the rate I want it to, but all I can do is put in the work and let nature takes its course.

 

Also, if you glance at the top of the Weight column, notice that I'm now down 20 lbs since the start of the year.  My weight change at this point has averaged just under 1.5 lbs per week.

 

 

 

[WhiteGhost]

Those are some very impressive gains (losses?) happening there!

[Hazard]

Achievement Unlocked:

 

I WALKED TO MORDOR!

 

 

 

 

First leg of the journey:  Bag End to Rivendell  (458 miles)

Time:  61 days

At an average of 7.51 miles walked per day

 

Second leg of the journey:  Rivendell to Lothlorien  (462 miles)

Time:  96 days

At an average of 4.81 miles walked per day

 

Third leg of the journey:  Lothlorien to Rauros Falls (389 miles)

Time:  45 days

At an average of 8.64 miles walked per day

 

Fourth Leg of the journey:  Rauros Fall to the Crack of Mt. Doom  (470 miles)

Time:  53 days

At an average of 8.87 miles walked per day

 

 

 

Journey began on 4 August 2017.  Journey completed on 14 April 2018.

 

Total Journey Distance: 1,779 miles

Total Time: 255 days (8 months, 1 week, 3 days).

 

At an average of 6.98 miles walked per day.

 

 

 

 

 

[elinox]

Your end goal for 2018 of a tiny waist is intimidating! Good luck!

[Hazard]

7 minutes ago, elinox said:

Your end goal for 2018 of a tiny waist is intimidating! Good luck!

 

The end-of-year goal is intimidating for me, too.  

 

But today’s goal is just to under-eat and move my body.  <—— That, I can manage.  

 

 

[RubiksCat]

I'm disappointed I'm late to the party but wow, congratulations on walking all the way to Mordor. It's amazing you lost an average of 1.5 lbs a week just by walking. Just by walking, that's pretty cool. Has anyone walked or ran through all the city's in Japan that the Pokemon Red/Blue/Yellow cities are based off of yet until they reach the Indigo Plateau? I've been thinking about it a lot.

[Hazard]

11 hours ago, Rubik'sCat said:

I'm disappointed I'm late to the party but wow, congratulations on walking all the way to Mordor.

 

Welcome.  I’m always happy to make new friends and have another person haunting my log.  

 

11 hours ago, Rubik'sCat said:

Has anyone walked or ran through all the city's in Japan that the Pokemon Red/Blue/Yellow cities are based off of yet until they reach the Indigo Plateau? I've been thinking about it a lot.

 

Not that I’m aware of.  Doing my next virtual-traveling sidequest, using Japan, sounds like fun.

 

 

[raptron]

Agh, sorry I was off your quest for the past month+. Congrats on hitting Mordor! SO MUCH WALKING.

 

And yeah, while your weight will go down linearly-ish, waist will likely be more fickle, but STILL decreasing, just probably in hops and spurts. Body faaat :mystical-finger-wiggling: Sounds like you are still putting in a lot of great work. 

[Hazard]

35 minutes ago, raptron said:

Sounds like you are still putting in a lot of great work. 

 

 

The last couple of weeks have actually been a wash, on the fitness front.  We bought a house up the road in another town, and have been eating out at local restaurants a lot while progressively moving stuff from the apartment over to the new home.  My weight has quickly crept back up a few pounds.

 

We’ve got the new kitchen in somewhat working order now though, so I can get some groceries into the fridge next trip.  That should help a lot.

 

 

[raptron]

On 4/24/2018 at 11:59 AM, Hazard said:

The last couple of weeks have actually been a wash, on the fitness front.  We bought a house up the road in another town, and have been eating out at local restaurants a lot while progressively moving stuff from the apartment over to the new home.  My weight has quickly crept back up a few pounds.

 

We’ve got the new kitchen in somewhat working order now though, so I can get some groceries into the fridge next trip.  That should help a lot.

I meaaaan, buying and moving into a house is a Big Deal! Congrats!

[elinox]

Hey @Hazard just checking in during week #2. How's your progress coming with Hero's Journey?

[Hazard]

6 hours ago, elinox said:

Hey @Hazard just checking in during week #2. How's your progress coming with Hero's Journey?

 

Hi! Thanks for asking.  I kinda forgot about the HJ thing.  I did the first couple of days, then got sidetracked.  Really busy getting the new house in order.  My diet’s out of whack and I’m fighting just to get my eating back under control during this relocation.  I don’t have the willpower to take on more battle’s than that right now.

 

[Hazard]

General update

 

Once we’ve got our new home fully functioning, I intend to post fitness stuff more regularly in here again.  Bear with me.

 

One thing I’m looking forward to is an increased workout space.  My old workout space in our apartment was about 100 sq ft.  My new workout space in the house is around 400 sq ft. .

 

 

[WhiteGhost]

Organizing a new house is a major drain, emotionally, financially, physically...  Hope you can get everything sorted soon

[elinox]

1 hour ago, Hazard said:

 

Hi! Thanks for asking.  I kinda forgot about the HJ thing.  I did the first couple of days, then got sidetracked.  Really busy getting the new house in order.  My diet’s out of whack and I’m fighting just to get my eating back under control during this relocation.  I don’t have the willpower to take on more battle’s than that right now.

 

No worries! If you find time and want to re-join us, there's a spot open for you.